Housing and Logistics Assistant – Pre Service Training (PST)

Vacancy Announcement

Housing and Logistics Assistant – Pre Service Training (PST)

(Short-term Contract)

The United States Peace Corps is a non-political, non-religious organization that will bring Americans to Viet Nam to serve as Peace Corps Volunteers. Volunteers will co-teach English language classes with Vietnamese teachers in secondary schools. The Peace Corps is serving in Viet Nam at the invitation of the Government of Viet Nam and working closely with Ministry of Education and Training with a goal to improve the English language skills of teachers and students. Peace Corps Volunteers commit to two years of service, and will support and co-lead additional school related activities in accordance with the school leadership. A new cohort of Volunteers will arrive each year. The Peace Corps was founded by U.S. President John F. Kennedy in 1961 to promote world peace and friendship.

General information about the Peace Corps can be found on www.peacecorps.gov .

Position Title: Housing and Logistics Assistant (HLA)

Opening Date: March 21, 2025

Submission Date for first review: April 13, 2025 (Open until filled)

Area of Consideration/Who may apply: All applicants must be a naturalized citizen or permanent resident of Vietnam who are legally able to work within the country.

Point of Contact: Peace Corps Human Resources – [email protected]

Duration of contract: Intermittently, on-call basis from September 2025 – December 2029 (including 1 base period + 4 one-year option periods).

Market Value/Salary: Daily rate of US$60/day for actual working days.

Work Schedule: 6-day workweek, from Monday through Saturday during Pre-Service Training, which normally takes place from September/October – December.

Place of Performance: Pre-Service Training Site and Peace Corps office

Security Level Required: Security Certification

Background information of the position

The Housing and Logistics Assistant (HLA) is responsible for supporting all activities including housing and training events in Pre-Service Training (PST) sites. HLA will be required to follow a six-day work week, with additional preparation time and activities in the evening, and/or on weekends.

In collaboration with a responsible Homestay Coordinator, they will support the implementation of searching, visiting, selecting, and improving independent houses, hotels, commercial homestays and other lodging options for PST. In collaboration with the responsible Training Manager (PST sites), they will provide ongoing support and feedback to both Trainers, Hosts and Trainees. The Housing and Logistics Assistant is supervised by Homestay Coordinator, and works closely with Training Manager (TM), Language and Cross-cultural Coordinator (LCC), and Language and Cultural Facilitators (LCFs), and other members of the PTE unit (Program, Training and Evaluation).

This position requires working fulltime. The Housing and Logistics Assistant will be required to travel as needed to support training events or other PC needs in other location. The Housing and Logistics Assistant may also be required to work outside of, or in addition to, normally scheduled hours to support training events and other Post needs. Training events are often six-day work weeks.

The Housing and Logistics Assistant must consistently use a range of support and communication skills including active listening, intercultural competence, interactive coaching, and timely and consistent follow through on requests for support and/or assistance and/or program adaptations. The Housing and Logistics Assistant should foster personal and professional growth in PCTs (Peace Corps Trainees), celebrate their accomplishments, promote best practices and consistently champion the efforts of PCTs and staff colleagues. Qualifications

Required:

At a minimum, the successful candidate’s CV must demonstrate the following:

One year experience in the hospitality industry or in customer service, or accomodation management, event or training coordination, or administration/logistic or team support.
High school diploma requirement.
Intermediate English proficiency.

Prefered:

Background in inter-cultural exchange or working in multi-cultural environment with diverse groups.
Familiarity in living or working in Tay Ho district (Hanoi) or rural areas in Hanoi/Ho Chi Minh.
Experience in team coordination (staff, students and/or volunteers), with a proactive and hands-on approach.
Strong problem-solving skills, particularly in purchasing, logistics and maintenance-related tasks.
Willingness to stay in Peace Corps-provided housing during Pre-service training (PST) period.

Duties and Responsibilities / Tasks and Deliverables

Preparation for PST HOUSING

Work with Homestay Coordinator and other staff to propose appropriate lodging options, including travel, rent costs, food, accommodation, and other logistic expenses for PST.
In coordination with Homestay Coordinator, Training Manager considering Peace Corps standard practice and local context, follow specific guidelines for the implementation of the housing program during PST.
Work with local leaders and police to ensure the compliance with local procedures regarding foreigners as well as safety and security conditions for PCTs.
Conduct visits to PST houses/sites and organize meetings and trainings with staff or local people to introduce PC/VN (Peace Corps Viet Nam), PCTs and program policies and requirements.
Purchase and coordinate housing and logistic items in preparation for Volunteer/Trainee housing.
Support to maintain accurate and complete files on homestay/lodging options (contact information, survey, images) for Homestay Coordinator to update data in the internal system and additional spreadsheets, as necessary.
In collaboration with the Training Manager, Homestay Coordinator, PCMO (Peace Corps Medical Officer), and SSM (Safety and Security Manager) support and fulfill the necessary health, safety

and security requirements for PST sites.

Acts as a backup host for the Language and Cross-Cultural Facilitator (LCF), providing support and hosting for PST training houses as needed.

Continual On-site Training Support during PST

Act as a resource, informant, and liaison for all housing, transportation activities, matters, and issues during the PST.
Facilitate effective communication between PCTs and other members at the PST houses.
Maintain regular contact with landlords/local leaders/police to handle relevant issues.
Track trends or outstanding issues related to training houses and update Homestay Coordinator, Training Manager (TM) and Director of Program and Training (DPT) accordingly.
Assist the TM and LCFs (Language and Cross-Cultural Facilitators) in facilitating language learning groupings and in developing relevant intercultural competency learning activities
Assist the preparations for Pre-Service Training (PST) events and support the faciliation in housing training sessions under the supervision of Homestay Coordinator.
Help with research on and arrangements for venues, transportation, guest speakers, and other logistical coordination.
Coordinate weekly PST transportation plan to support all trainers and trainees’ activities
Coordinate technical, logistic needs, housing items and delivery process at PST/Volunteer houses and PST sessions.
Assist in photocopying and preparation of training materials when needed.
Act as translator and interpreter for PST staff as needed.
Perform other tasks when required.

Trainee Support and Assessment

The Housing and Logistics Assistant is a key support and contact person for PCTs in matters related to their lodging accommodations, transportation, cultural adjustment, language development, and community integration during Pre-service training. Support and assessment duties and responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following:

Respond to queries and issues raised by PCTs regarding their housing promptly and sensitively. Escalate engagement as needed, including calls, texts, in-person personal meetings with affected parties, while maintaining appropriate levels of privacy.
Assist PCTs in improving their social and cultural adaptation and self-sufficiency through the language tips/role plays, cultural insights, and direction to relevant and available resources.
Help individual PCTs identify their individual learning and adjustment challenges related to community integration; provide support and guidance to help them meet those.

1. Standard Roles and Responsibilities

The Housing and Logistic Assistant, as a Personal Service Contractor (PSC), shall:

If there is a time at post, due to pandemic or for any other reason, when there are limited or no Peace Corps Trainees and/or Volunteers (jointly referred to as “Volunteers”) at Peace Corps/Viet Nam the PSC may be temporarily assigned during that period, as determined by the Peace Corps Country Director (CD), to carry out additional duties and responsibilities in furtherance of the goals of the Peace Corps in order to enhance the ability of Peace Corps Volunteers to perform functions under the Peace Corps Act, including facilitating a safe environment in order for the successful return or increase of Volunteers.
This temporary assignment may require the PSC to provide services and/or support beyond what is listed in their current Statement of Work (SOW). The services and/or support may take many forms, examples of which may include but are not limited to, training, providing administrative, technical, medical, and/or operational assistance, building on host country programs, etc. This temporary assignment also may require the PSC to provide these services and/or support to individuals/organizations other than those listed in their current SOW such as host country government, partner organization(s), community member(s), staff, and/or contractors.

Safety &Security:

All members of the Peace Corps team must be familiar with the Emergency Action Plan, their responsibilities in the event of an emergency, and with the procedures for reporting and responding to safety and security incidents.

The duties and responsibilities, particularly as they concern Volunteers and Trainees, include, but are not limited to, the following:

Evaluates Training houses and housing options to ensure conformity to established standards for safety and security of Trainees.
Ensures the Training house host, landlords and local officials are willing and able to provide appropriate support to Trainees.
Immediately communicates Volunteer safety and security concerns and issues to the Safety and Security Manager (SSM) and Training Manager.
Knowledgeable and supportive of Peace Corps safety and security policies and procedures, including the timely reporting of suspicious incidents, persons or articles.
Acts as Duty Officer as assigned: A Duty Officer is “on call” 24/7 for a one-week period, is restricted from travel during that period, and must be available through the Duty Officer cell phone at all times. The Duty Officer works closely with the Safety and Security Manager

Logistics & Level of Effort & Duty Station

Duty Station is Pre-Service Training Site and PC office. The Housing and Logistics Assistant is required to travel as needed to support training events, site houses or other PC needs in other location. The Housing and Logistics Assistant may also be required to work outside of, or in addition to, normally scheduled hours to support training events and other Post needs. Training events are often six-day work weeks.

Evaluation and Selection Criteria:

Applications will be initially screened for eligibility in accordance with the required qualifications mentioned above. Those applicants who meet the required qualifications will be scored based on the preferred qualifications. Highest scoring candidates will be called in for interview(s), and may be skill test(s). Performance from all interviews and skill test(s) will be considered as a whole package to ensure the best candidate is selected that meets the needs of the Peace Corps mission. Professional reference check and employment check will be conducted for selected candidates.

All applicants must be a naturalized citizen or permanent resident of Vietnam who are legally able to work within the country.

Selected candidates must pass a background/security investigation and a medical clearance for contracting with Peace Corps. Any contract offer with the Peace Corps is contingent upon a candidate’s ability to secure the necessary certifications.

How to apply:

Please submit the following in English by email (with your name and the position you are applying for in the subject of the email) as one PDF file to [email protected]:

Application Cover Letter
Curriculum Vitae (CV)

The application must contain all the information necessary to demonstrate that the candidate possesses the education, experience, skills and language abilities required for this position.

Closing date: Applications should be received by 6:00 pm Sunday, April 13, 2025 for consideration in the first review. Position remains open until filled. Applications for one position maybe considered for any current open position. No phone calls or personal visits related to this vacancy will be accepted. Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

Benefits and Allowances:

BENEFITS:

4 hours of Sick Leave per 2 working week period
Overtime payment/Credit hour if working overtime or on holiday

ALLOWANCES:

Lodging and Per Diem during the PST will be covered by Peace Corps for staying and working at the Training Site

The Peace Corps is both a federal agency and a vehicle through which American citizens offer needed assistance to people around the world and, in doing so, promote greater cross-cultural understanding between Americans and the people of the host countries. The fulfillment of the Peace Corps’ mission to foster greater understanding among the world’s citizens requires that we adhere to the highest standards with respect to equal employment opportunity for all Volunteers, employees, and applicants. The U.S. Peace Corps Vietnam will provide equal opportunity and fair and equitable treatment in employment to all people without regard to race, color religion, ethnicity, sex, national origin, age, disability, political affiliation, marital status, pregnancy and maternity or sexual orientation. The Peace Corps will also strive to achieve equal employment opportunity in all personnel operations. Discrimination based on factors that have no bearing on a person’s ability to serve and perform his or her duties is not permitted and will not be tolerated.